Center Comments on 2019 DOL Overtime Proposed Rules

On May 21, 2019, the Center submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) on its proposed rules that would increase the salary threshold for exemption for overtime pay requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act from $23,660 per year to more than $35,000 per year. The Center's comment recommended that DOL:

  1. Increase the salary threshold from the level set in 2004;
  2. Provide adequate notice of the final change in the salary threshold (and in future increases to the salary threshold);
  3. Seek input from nonprofits and other employers in areas of the country with below-average salaries to ensure that the increased salary threshold is reasonable in these communities;
  4. Treat nonprofits the same as other employers in the final change in the salary threshold and in any future changes to the FLSA exemption salary threshold;
  5. Use a single salary threshold for executive, administrative, and professional exemptions;
  6. Create a mechanism through which nonprofits with government grants and contracts can seek adjustments to cover unanticipated increased costs due to the higher salary threshold; and
  7. Consider seeking input from nonprofits about possible changes to regulations or Department guidance on the duties tests to provide better clarity about which nonprofit employees meet the criteria for FLSA exemption.